What's wrong with Michael Bradley?

For Michael Bradley, this looks tells the story of the 2014 World Cup. (Martin Mejia, AP Photo)

As with any time the United States has entered a World Cup, the roster included few players who could be considered elite at the highest level.

Goalkeeper Tim Howard would be on that list.

The only other person likely to be named, consistently, was Michael Bradley.

And why not? The 26-year-old midfielder has been so advanced for so many years. In his first World Cup he was all poise and promise, patrolling a large swath of the midfield while making tough tackles and smart passes.

Bradley grew up around the game. His father, Bob, was the coach at Princeton and then for the Chicago Fire, meaning Michael was around the top players in the country.

He turned pro at age 17 but lasted only two years in the MLS before becoming the youngest player ever bought on transfer from the league.

Bradley impressed in stints the Netherlands, Germany, England and Italy, some of the top leagues in the world. Here was a rugged American player who also thought the game two steps ahead.

Why, then, has he struggled so noticeably in Brazil?

Bradley was widely criticized for not controlling the ball in the final minute of the U.S.’s 2-2 tie with Portugal. The gaffe shown below led to the tying goal.

But the play was a catalyst for what’s been evident all tournament: Michael Bradley has not been elite. He’s been average. He’s gone from being the player who could elevate the United States to one who has, at times, held it back.

He has not been particularly physical.

His distribution of the ball has been shaky.

His best chance on goal was a major disappointment.

But Bradley won’t sit now. He’s still too important.

People who criticize Michael Bradley need to chill. What, you're going to sit him now? Of course not.

It’d be unlike Klinsmann to not try something to get his star player recalibrated, though.

Before he can decide what to do, he needs to figure out what’s ailing Bradley.

A few possible explanations:

1. It’s true: The MLS can’t prepare elite players

After losing his starting spot with top-flight Italian team AS Roma, Bradley pushed for a transfer and ended up precisely where U.S. men’s national team coach Jurgen Klinsmann did not want him: back in the MLS.

Klinsmann, who is German, has done nothing to hide his scorn for the MLS. Speaking of Landon Donovan, he told The New York Times: ““This is where MLS hurts him. He was playing at 70 percent, 80 percent, and he was still dominant. That doesn’t help anyone.”

Bradley has played all of six games for Toronto, so it’s not like he’s totally re-oriented to what Klinsmann believes is a lower level of soccer. But certainly the environment he finds himself in — Toronto is not exactly a high pressure spot to be playing soccer — could leave him in less-than-top form.

Bradley has traditionally played a defensive role on the national team, but was moved forward in recent weeks. And while he continues to have a good instinct for getting the ball on net, he’s failed to orchestrate much offense by feeding his very capable teammates on the outside.

In 2010 he looked most comfortable when the ball was in front of him. He often made stops, then connected on long first passes to turn the attack quickly. The U.S. needs more of that.

3. Bradley has plateaued, and this is who he is

In it, Bradley is quoted discussing his transition to the German Bundesliga. He says: “So at that point the level goes up and I’m either going to figure it out and rise to that level or I’m not.”

Nobody would argue that Bradley didn’t have a good showing with Borussia Monchengladbach. He had some disputes with the team’s coach about playing time, but ultimately appeared in 76 matches over three seasons, scoring 10 goals.

After a disastrous 2011 loan spell with Aston Villa in England, he went to Italian club Chievo Verona. Bradley had a terrific season in Verona, earning him a transfer to Roma, one of the world’s biggest clubs.

Bradley played well during the 2012-13 season with Roma, and enjoyed some success during the early part of 2013-14, including a memorable game-winning goal against Udinese. However, his playing time dwindled when the team added midfielders Kevin Strootman and Adem Ljajic.

In January, he decided to make the move back to MLS.

Many questioned this move, as Bradley would have certainly found playing time elsewhere in Europe.

What’s the answer?

The truth? Probably a combination of the three factors.

Bradley’s life changed drastically in the months before the World Cup. He’s adjusting to a new league and a new, more central role on his club. That club, it must be acknowledged, doesn’t surround him with the same level of talent or provide the same level of challenge as his previous stops.

Yet the move to Toronto probably does make sense, in the long run. Bradley wasn’t going to be getting enough playing time in Italy to continue his development and maintain the role he needs to play for the U.S. — leader and focal point. He will now.

He just hasn’t completed the adjustment.

So far, in Brazil, that much is clear.

Bradley remains one of the top American players, though, as cerebral as he is determined. If anybody can turn it around quickly — possibly in time for Thursday’s crucial match with world power Germany — it’s Bradley.